Thank you Richard

[antoniosz]

Few days ago, I read in a forum a message that Richard Binder posted about a pen that gave him trouble

because the insides were really meshed up. I did not realize at that time that he was talking about a pen that I send him to fix.

 

I got this beautiful Waterman 42 safety with a smooth 18KR european overlay from an ebay seller from Italy.

It came with a very tasty box that had this light smell of an old aroma. I noticed the extra long length of the tines,

which most of the time means interesting flex. But the iridium was missing in one of the tines,

and the mechanism was not working. So I sent it to Richard Binder. Today, after coming back from the office the pen,

fully repaired, was waiting for me. Inked with the infamous Waterman blue-black that Richard suggests, it is simply a dream.

 

I am not going to write more. Enjoy the photos.

 

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/azavalia/W42-001.jpg

 

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/azavalia/W42-002.jpg

 

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/azavalia/W42-003.jpg

 

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/azavalia/W42-004.jpg

Edited November 13, 2006 by antoniosz

[Roger]

One master to another, Antonios. If I could write like that, I'd sit up and look at it all night!

[Ruaidhri]

Wooooo - that means mine has moved up the list

BTW young Binder - that was NOT a hint - just happy expectation

 

Soon as I get my baby I'll be on to you Antonios for some samplers.

[southpaw]

WOW!!! All I can say is just, "WOW!!!" (to both of you)

[sonia_simone]

I'll second that!

[Gdr2004]

.....sure can't do that with ballpoint!

 

Thank you for the awesome display of penmanship and the pens!

[BMWRT]

I agree with Southpaw.

I have come to the realizatiuon that no matter how much I practice I will never reach the level that you have

[Roger]

I agree with Southpaw.

I have come to the realizatiuon that no matter how much I practice I will never reach the level that you have

Exactly! A common misconception is that "if I put as much time into _____ (insert whatever activity that strikes your fancy), I'd be as good as they are". Not so!

 

The highest level in any endeavor is attained by having the talent AND honing it with practice well above what most people would consider adequate.

 

How many times have I heard golfers lament "If I played as much as those guys, I'd be a "scratch" player, too!" Well, I neglected a number of things in my life for some time and played and practiced as much as those guys and, yes, I got better, but never achieved "scratch" status. Got to a "Two" but just couldn't shave those last strokes off the card! Oh, and yes, I availed myself to professional level coaching as well.

[antoniosz]

How many times have I heard golfers lament "If I played as much as those guys, I'd be a "scratch" player, too!" Well, I neglected a number of things in my life for some time and played and practiced as much as those guys and, yes, I got better, but never achieved "scratch" status. Got to a "Two" but just couldn't shave those last strokes off the card!

 

But Roger you admit it yourself. You did improve by practicing. Isn't all this enough motivation for trying?

 

There are many much better, (real) calligraphers that I admire and I know that I will never reach their state of execution. The book under the pen is an example - all that was achieved with turkey feathers or worse, and it is light-years better than mine in terms of consistency, and creativity.

 

We can kick ourselfs for not being able to reach that absolute, ideal level but it is more productive to motivate us to just try to go a single level up

[Anne-Sophie]

Dear Antonios,

 

 

I'm jealous, green with envy that pen is a great find and your handwriting is out of this world.

 

Now, how to steal both? Super-duper magnet attracted to Iridium and Star Trek like gizmo to pinpoint the handwriting part of the brain, scans it and duplicate it.

 

That should do it.

 

 

Seriously, I have yet to see Spencerian (what is the name of the handwriting you use?) writings and a pen match so perfectly.

 

 

Congratulations!

[arvadajames]

I really don't see what the big deal is. My writing is every bit as good as Antonios', that is until I actually touch the paper with my FP :ltcapd: Oh, if I could only get 1/10th of what is in my mind onto the paper. :bonk: Beautiful handwriting and a beautiful pen. I really enjoy metal pens, and the one you have is special.

[sonia_simone]

I see what you mean--I'm as good a writer as Flannery O' Connor until I mess it up by putting the words on a screen or some paper.

[wdyasq]

I agree with Southpaw.

I have come to the realizatiuon that no matter how much I practice I will never reach the level that you have

Exactly! A common misconception is that "if I put as much time into _____ (insert whatever activity that strikes your fancy), I'd be as good as they are". Not so!

 

The highest level in any endeavor is attained by having the talent AND honing it with practice well above what most people would consider adequate.

 

How many times have I heard golfers lament "If I played as much as those guys, I'd be a "scratch" player, too!" Well, I neglected a number of things in my life for some time and played and practiced as much as those guys and, yes, I got better, but never achieved "scratch" status. Got to a "Two" but just couldn't shave those last strokes off the card! Oh, and yes, I availed myself to professional level coaching as well.

Well, you could do like a previous president and shave the extra strokes off with the pencil kept for scoring...

 

Not that anyone would believe you.

 

I used to take my Standard poodle "Katy" with me just about everywhere. Folks would comment on the dog's good manors and wish theirs was as such. I had two common remarks, "If you spent a thousand hours or so training your dog it would probably act beter." and "It may not be the dog is the problem."

 

Some things do take skill, some only practice, some both. Eli Whitney would run his factories where those with high skills built more difficult parts. The final evolution was to remove the necessity of skill from the workman and put it into management.

 

Enough rant,

 

Ron

[wmbrady]

Does it count if I use voice-to-text software and print it out in wedding script?

[HyperCamper]

Does it count if I use voice-to-text software and print it out in wedding script?

 

Well, I suppose, if you print in blue... Then it's ok!

 

To Richard and Antonio: I stand in awe when I look at what art you both create!

 

Thanks very much for sharing those graceful pictures.

Edited October 15, 2006 by HyperCamper

[Stumpy]

Blimey!

 

What a pen, and what handwriting!

[Johnny Appleseed]

I have always been of the opinion that talent was somewhat over-rated in these endeavors. That isn't to say that there isn't an element of natural ability - obviously our neurological wiring differs for each of us, our eye-hand coordination, the way we see, etc. plays a role, and some skills come more easily to some than to others, but I don't think that is as clear-cut as we think.

 

We often talk about practice vs. talent, but I think that the unrecognized element to all success is drive and vision. You have to want to do something well to do it well, and you have to be able see the process. When I was doing art classes, I remember that the really good artists were the ones that didn't think as much about how the work turned out, but rather lived the process to get there - who look at a beautiful drawing and don't say "I wish I could draw like that" but rather "how did they do that line quality around the elbow.".

 

Then you have to have the drive and desire to keep working on whatever it is until it's right. I suspect Antonios could well have the skills of many of the professional calligraphers he admires, but his deeper interest lay in materials science, rather than perfect flex-nib calligraphy, so he chose to get a PhD in that field rather than go to art school. None of us can do everthing well, nor should we try. I really think those who become great at just about any art do it because they love it.

 

I remember reading an article years ago in "Letter Arts Review" where one professional calligrapher was talking about her own art career. She was studying with one of the calligraphic masters in art school, and one day she and one of her teachers and a couple of other students were messing around informally with a bamboo pen, when her teacher commented "If you really want to learn calligraphy, study modern dance." She did and it made a huge improvement with her own work, because doing calligraphy is really more about the motion of the body than the ink on the paper. How many of us would take dance classes to improve our calligraphy? How many would have the vision to see that, and the drive to take the time to do it? I think that a lot of "talent" is that sort of process-vision.

 

John

[mike1]

Wonderful story and writing.

[antoniosz]

Reposting the images that disappeared in this old post

 

http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b325/azavalia/W42-001.jpg

http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b325/azavalia/W42-002.jpg

http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b325/azavalia/W42-003.jpg

http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b325/azavalia/W42-004-1.jpg

Edited December 6, 2009 by antoniosz

[stevlight]

WOW Two masters--Richard with fixing pens and You with using them--beautiful pen and handwriting!